Prados de la Escosura, LeandroUniversidad Carlos III de Madrid. Instituto Figuerola de Historia y Ciencias Sociales2021-10-052021-10-052021-10-052341-2542https://hdl.handle.net/10016/33369This short paper examines Patrick O'Brien's bold reinterpretation of the British Industrial Revolution as a joint result of the expropriation of land by the landed aristocracy, abundant coal endowments, and the unintended consequences of self-defence, in the context of historical literature and contraposes it to evidence on long run growth and inequality and alternative narratives of British industrialisation. It concludes that, by neglecting the contribution of culture and institutions to incentivise investment and innovation, O'Brien lessens the role of the British Industrial Revolution for understanding modern economic growth.engAtribución-NoComercial-SinDerivadas 3.0 EspañaIndustrial RevolutionBritainMercantilist StateAgricultureCoalGrowthInequalityworking paperN13N43N53O14O47EconomíaDT/0000001928